Category: Community Security & Antisemitism

Over the weekend, an act of antisemitic arson devastated Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson, Mississippi—an attack not only on a building, but on the heart of Jewish life in a small and geographically isolated community. In a region with few nearby Jewish institutions, the loss of a synagogue carries particular weight. It was an attack on Jewish life in a place where sustaining it is neither easy nor assumed.

Several Torah scrolls were destroyed or damaged in the fire, a profound spiritual and communal loss for the congregation. One Torah that survived the Holocaust was protected and not damaged. Its survival does not lessen what was lost, but it stands as a reminder of the endurance of Jewish life in the face of hatred.

This was not vandalism. It was a deliberate act of antisemitic violence, echoing a painful history for this congregation, which was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 for its civil rights leadership.
For Jews in small Southern communities, maintaining Jewish life often already requires resilience, vigilance, and deep commitment. When a synagogue is targeted, the loss extends far beyond physical walls. It disrupts the ability to gather, to worship, and to remain visible as a Jewish community. Our hearts are with the Jackson Jewish community as they begin the long and painful work of rebuilding.

We are working in close coordination with national and regional partners, including Jewish Federations of North America, as well as Federation partners in the region, including the Memphis Jewish Federation, the nearest Federation community. In response, The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington has opened a dedicated fund to support recovery and rebuilding efforts. This approach helps ensure support is coordinated, responsible, and responsive to real needs on the ground, while allowing the affected community to focus on care, recovery, and rebuilding.

How You Can Help

Support recovery and rebuilding efforts through a dedicated fund coordinated by The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. Funds raised will be directed to trusted, vetted partners working directly with the congregation and community.

At the same time, this attack reinforces why shared investment in community security remains essential. Synagogues and Jewish institutions should never have to stand alone in protecting themselves. Here in Greater Washington, we continue to strengthen preparedness, infrastructure, and coordination through our community security efforts, reflecting our commitment to protecting Jewish life today and into the future.

This is the role Federation plays every day: connecting our community and its donors to moments of greatest need, stewarding resources with care, and helping ensure Jewish life can endure wherever it is threatened.

Moments like this test us, and they also remind us why collective action remains one of the most powerful expressions of Jewish responsibility and care.

Recently, a security concern was identified and reported quickly thanks to the awareness and vigilance of a few community members. Because they trusted their instincts and spoke up, the situation was addressed promptly and did not escalate.

While the incident itself was resolved, it offers an important reminder: training matters—and so does taking action when something doesn’t feel right.

Awareness Is a Skill We Can All Build

Every one of us has a role to play in maintaining safe, welcoming environments across our community and within our institutions. Sometimes that role looks like participating in a security training. Other times, it’s simply noticing what’s around you and trusting your intuition.

Small observations can matter more than we realize:

• An unfamiliar person lingering
• Clothing or behavior that doesn’t fit the setting
• A vehicle parked in an unusual way
• A conversation that feels out of place

Individually, these details may seem minor. Together, they can provide critical information—but only if someone chooses to say something.

As We Look Ahead

As we enter a new year, we know the Jewish community will continue to navigate complex and challenging moments. One of the ways we care for one another is by staying alert, informed, and prepared.

JShield supports this work by offering free security trainings for individuals and institutions across our community. These sessions help build confidence, sharpen awareness, and provide practical tools for navigating uncertain situations.

Just as importantly, we encourage everyone to:

• Trust yourself when something feels off. Your instincts are often the first line of defense.
• Speak up promptly. Timely reporting allows for effective response and mitigation, whether that means contacting JShield, your institution’s security team, a staff member, or local authorities.

Looking Out for One Another

Our strength as a community has always come from the way we look out for one another. This moment reinforces a simple but powerful truth: safety is a shared responsibility—a team effort. When we act together, we are more resilient.

Thank you for your continued partnership, your vigilance, and your commitment to keeping our community safe and welcoming.

Last week, I wrote about how fed up I felt in the wake of the Bondi attack and how imperative it is that leaders take the threat of antisemitism seriously. My frustration holds as we continue to see leaders dismiss antisemitism as simply “free speech” or as reasonable debate. But today, I want to linger on a more life-affirming note.

I’ve been marveling at all the stories coming out recently about people who, without hesitation, have stood up to help others. The accounts are humbling, inspiring, and serve as testaments to the good inside us. There’s Ahmed el Ahmed who singlehandedly disarmed one of the Bondi shooters and in doing so saved lives, rebuked ISIS ideology, and offered the world a stunning example of heroism. There’s Boris and Sofia Gurman who also confronted one of the Bondi gunmen, giving their lives to save others just weeks before their 35th wedding anniversary. There’s Spencer Yang, a first-year student at Brown who was shot in the leg and still managed to take care of the guy next to him, keeping him conscious until help arrived. And so many more.

I am also, like many of you, thinking about Rob Reiner. My family and I love his movies. Watching The Princess Bride as a family is a core memory for me. Rob’s films always leave me feeling better about people. He had a knack for exploring and celebrating our common instincts and potential for love, including our tendency toward empathy, in ways both subtle and heartwarming. As one commenter wrote on Stephen King’s tribute to the filmmaker, “Rob Reiner’s humanness was turned up to 11.” (If you know, you know…).

This, to me, is the whole game, to find a way to crank up our humanness as high as it will go. In this age of isolation and online rage, there will be no greater power than our ability to tap into our uniquely messy, endearing, creative, loving human traits. There is no foe too great that cannot be bested with our humanity.

In these final days of 2025, I’m holding onto this thought and looking around at all the light piercing through the darkness. We can each of us make a difference in astounding ways (to this end, there’s still time to give to Federation’s Annual Campaign!). I may not have the courage of those heroes at Bondi or the artistic skill of a filmmaker, but I love my community and look forward to serving it alongside all of you in the year ahead. As Rob Reiner might say, storming the castle to build a better future is best done together.

Shabbat Shalom and wishes for a happy, safe, and healthy new year.

“Verbal abuse becomes graffiti, becomes arson, becomes physical violence, becomes murder.” We know this continuum well. We have now watched every step play out with devastating consequences in Australia. How maddening that two thousand years after the first Chanukah, people are still seeking to murder us for being Jews.

When CNN called me for my thoughts on the attack, they could no doubt sense the aggravation in my voice. No one should have to wake up to stories about a mother and her 17-month-old diving for cover after checking out a Chanukah event full of music and bubbles. About the rabbi who lost his life two months after his son was born. About how Jews gathering to celebrate were gunned down. Again.

Across time. Across space. This has been our story to bear. It is time for a new one. Leaders on both sides of the aisle have spent the last several years dismissing antisemitism, explaining away antisemites, and letting hints of radicalization slide. But the hour for tolerating any kind of minimizing is over. 

It’s incumbent upon all political, civic, business, and religious leaders to challenge the hate directed at Jews and the Jewish people unequivocally, which includes condemning ardent and budding antisemites no matter their place in society or on the political spectrum.

Additionally, I’ve seen how it’s become normal, even chic, in certain circles to denigrate anything having to do with Israel. This too demands our pushback. Criticism is okay. Open debate is vital. But even as we strive for nuance, we must reject the vilification of Israel as a country, of Zionism as an idea, and, of the Jewish people as a whole.

As members of the Jewish community here in the nation’s capital, we have especially urgent roles to play in this effort. This is one of the most networked, most passionate communities around. It’s time to use our influence and find our voice so that we can be a collective thorn in antisemitism’s side.

We can all reach out to people we know in positions of power—federation, state, and local representatives, school board leaders, teachers, and so on. We can help raise the expectations for speech in the public square. Help emphasize that words have consequences. That a twisted comment becomes a belief system becomes a bullet.

It’s also important to remember that most people in our own social circles are well-meaning. Instead of jumping straight to condemnation in these cases, we can help by opposing problematic language and making generous offers of engagement and education.

I’m heartbroken. I’m devastated for the families of those killed and injured at Bondi, and, even now, we have a way forward.

We’ve known hate and we know how to overcome it. As the Maccabees would remind us, it starts with tapping into our agency and the strength of the Jewish people.  

Sunday’s attack in Australia may have happened halfway around the world, but for many of us, it hit much closer to home.

That’s the nature of Jewish vulnerability today. A violent act against a Jewish community “over there” immediately reverberates here. Our sense of safety shifts. Our plans are second-guessed. Fear creeps in.

And that’s exactly why Federation’s security work through JShield isn’t reactive. It doesn’t ebb and flow with the headlines. And it certainly doesn’t start the night before an event.

Because by the time something happens—whether it’s in Sydney or Silver Spring—it’s already too late to start building the relationships, training, and infrastructure that real security depends on.

What You Didn’t See Yesterday

As soon as we learned of the attack in Australia, our first calls were to local law enforcement partners and the FBI.

We didn’t have to introduce ourselves. We didn’t need to explain why something happening halfway around the world matters here. These are relationships we’ve built steadily over years. When we call, they respond. And they did.

That kind of response isn’t automatic. It’s built on trust. And it’s something we help every institution cultivate—hyper-local connections, district commanders who know your name, first responders who’ve walked your halls. Because when something happens, you don’t want to meet them for the first time. You want to greet them like an old friend.

From Panic to Planning

After the attack, our inboxes filled with last-minute security requests from organizations hosting Chanukah events that had been on the calendar for weeks.

It’s understandable. But it misses the point.

If you needed security last night, you needed it three weeks ago when the event was planned.

Security isn’t something you switch on out of fear. It’s something you build over time—through planning, training, and partnership. That’s what JShield is here to help our community do.

The Power of Community Reporting

Last year, more than 30 Jewish institutions in our region received threatening letters, most vaguely referencing Gaza, some outright menacing. On their own, each one might have been brushed aside.

But thanks to the reporting we encourage through JShield, we saw the bigger picture. We connected the dots across states. We got the FBI involved.

And we got results. The suspect, who lives just outside Silver Spring, recently pled guilty to federal hate crime charges. That outcome didn’t just happen. It was made possible by a community that’s engaged, prepared, and connected.

What Security Really Looks Like

Since JShield launched, we’ve helped bring in more than $5 million in federal security grants for local Jewish institutions. We’ve done hundreds of threat assessments. Helped write emergency protocols. Trained thousands of people on situational awareness and how to stay calm under pressure.

And we know those trainings stick. One teacher told us she starts every school day with a breathing exercise she learned from us. Not because she’s scared, but because it helps her and her students feel grounded.

That’s what we mean when we say training is like putting money in the bank. You don’t get to choose the emergency. But every bit of preparation makes you more ready for whatever comes.

This Moment Is Personal. And It’s Urgent.

If you’ve felt a little more anxious dropping your kids at school or wondered if your synagogue is doing enough to stay safe, you’re not alone. We’re hearing it across the community. And we feel it too.

But fear alone doesn’t keep us safe. Action does.

Right now, we have a critical opportunity. Thanks to a generous match, every dollar you give to support Federation’s security work through JShield will go even farther. That means more trainings, more assessments, and more direct support to institutions across Greater Washington.

Because cost should never be a barrier to security. That’s why every service JShield provides—from threat assessments to training—is offered free to the community, powered by Federation and donors like you.

Security doesn’t start with police. It starts with preparation, with connection, and with showing up for each other before something happens, not just after.

We can’t wait for the next headline to get ready. This is the moment to act.

Give now to protect Jewish life in Greater Washington. Let’s meet this moment—and this powerful matching opportunity—together.

In the wake of the horrific terrorist attack in Australia, I want to speak directly to our community here at home.

Our hearts are with the victims, their families, and the Jewish community in Australia as they mourn and begin to heal. Violence against Jews anywhere reverberates everywhere, and moments like this understandably heighten concern within our own community.

Here in Greater Washington, the safety and security of Jewish life remains our highest priority. Through JShield, Federation’s community-wide security initiative, we are in close coordination with local and federal partners and with Jewish ​institutions across our region, supporting schools, synagogues, and organizations with threat monitoring, training, assessments, and grant support at no cost. You can learn more about how JShield works to keep our community safe at shalomdc.org/security.

If you see or experience something concerning, we encourage you to report it to JShield. Reporting helps identify patterns and supports coordination with our security partners.

Jewish life will continue. We will gather, celebrate, learn, and mark our holidays together, thoughtfully, responsibly, and with care for one another.

At the same time, this moment calls on all of us to be attentive to the language and actions we tolerate in our public spaces. Antisemitism, in any form, must be named and challenged, and Jewish communities must never be left to carry that burden alone.

Earlier today, I shared these concerns in a brief conversation on CNN about antisemitism and the responsibility to challenge it before it escalates. You can watch it clip below.

Thank you for the many ways you show up for one another and for our community, especially in difficult moments. We are grateful for your partnership and your trust, and we remain committed to keeping Jewish life in Greater Washington strong, safe, and connected.

This is a moment for shared responsibility. Take action by supporting JShield and strengthening Jewish community security.

Reading the news reminds me of the comic books I read as a kid. They’d start off with large headlines announcing the latest victories of the world’s villains, each update more concerning than the last. Then, when things were at their bleakest, the superheroes would show up and answer the call of a world in distress. Which is to say I’m accustomed to looking around for heroes when times get tough.

This year, I found the heroes I was searching for in all of you. Harnessing the twin forces of empathy and resolve, community members across Greater Washington stepped up to be there for people in need in a year of overwhelming uncertainty. Thanks to your support, Federation was able to expand and strengthen a network of care across D.C., Maryland, and Northern Virginia and infuse resources where they were needed most.

Our partners at JSSA, Yad Yehuda, and Hebrew Free Loan Association of Greater Washington, among others, responded to serial crises with food assistance, interest free loans, mental health resources, and other emergency support. Our area rabbis joined together to distribute grants made available by Federation to those who could use a helping hand. And Jewish organizations of all sizes set aside funds to make Jewish experiences, including Jewish day school and Jewish summer camp, more accessible to more people.

Meanwhile, Makom, JCADA, and JCA, and Tzedek DC, and others continued the quiet, sacred work of caring for the elderly in our community, advocating and providing services for those living with disabilities, responding to reports of abuse and domestic violence, and helping families get back on their feet after periods of struggle. This work was made possible by your partnership.

That’s why even as we close out a year that often felt challenging, I’m encouraged, hopeful even, about what lies ahead. The world does not lack for destructive forces. But there are even more heroes in our midst who meet suffering with love and generosity and do what they can to ensure our community’s human service offerings remain strong.

If this work moves you, I invite you to keep responding and give to Federation’s Annual Campaign. The Annual Campaign is the most essential source of funding for Federation’s work across our region, enabling us to support vital services people rely on every day and all the more so in times of crisis.

The impact of federal layoffs, the government shutdown, and the ongoing affordability crisis is hitting our area hard. Thousands of members of the Jewish community are struggling with poverty and meeting their basic needs. A gift to Federation ensures we can continue helping people through this moment and access the joy of Jewish life.

As the saying goes, not all heroes wear capes. But what our local champions lack in costume, they more than make up for in heart. The resources we are able to provide through the Annual Campaign reflect our commitment to each other. Thank you for showing up in the name of community. We need you.

Last month, we stumbled onto something extraordinary: a set of original minutes from the very first meetings of the United Jewish Appeal in Washington. Hand-typed pages from 1948 and 1949 outlining early allocations, emergency support for Israel, and the names of families who stepped up to lead, many of whom are still shaping Jewish life in our region today.

A Time Capsule of Responsibility

Reading these documents feels like opening a time capsule. The issues were different, the world was different, but the heartbeat is the same: people coming together, pooling resources, and taking responsibility for one another.

Urgency, Action, and One Afternoon

One moment stands out. In April 1949, local leaders gathered at the Ambassador Hotel for what the minutes called a “special meeting.” The purpose?

“Obtain permission of the Executive Committee to borrow an additional half million dollars to advance the United Jewish Appeal… with regard to the deplorable condition of the new immigrants entering Israel.”

Half a million dollars, approved in one afternoon—a community stepping in without hesitation. You can almost feel the urgency in the room and the shared understanding that their choices mattered; that lives depended on them getting this right.

When Community Meant Everyone

Another set of minutes from late 1948 details the young community’s first major campaign: 16,163 contributors giving more than $2 million, an astonishing act of collective generosity. Their allocations spanned Israel, local agencies, national advocacy, and emerging Jewish institutions.

And even the follow-up work tells its own story. One line notes the need to “intensify collections” and clean up the outstanding gifts still considered “gettable.” It’s a reminder that closing gaps and meeting the moment has always been part of our work. It’s as true now, at year-end, as it was then.

They debated, they decided, and they built the foundation we’re still standing on today.

A Year-End Reminder of Who We Are

As we approach year-end, this history hits differently. It reminds us that our community has always risen to the moment—not because someone told us to, but because collective responsibility is who we are. We give, we show up, and we build together.

Every gift today continues a legacy of care, courage, and shared purpose.

And now, just as they stepped up then, we’re called to do the same. Two year-end matches are helping every gift go further to strengthen belonging, community life, and security across our region:

• Jewish Life & Belonging (including Northern Virginia): Every dollar is matched 1:1 up to $750,000, supporting community-building, engagement, and especially the fast-growing needs in Northern Virginia.
• Community Security: Every gift is matched at 50 cents on the dollar up to $1 million, helping protect our synagogues, schools, and gathering spaces with training, assessments, and critical security investments.
• Together, these two opportunities can unlock nearly $1.5 million in additional support for Jewish Greater Washington, amplifying our shared legacy of responsibility and care.

Make a gift today to support belonging, security, and our nearly 100 years of communal investment.

There’s more than one way to slice an apple, bake a challah, or make someone’s day. And there’s definitely more than one way to make a difference.

Every gift to The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington helps someone feel more connected, supported, and seen—whether it’s a teen finding their place in Jewish life, a family getting help in a moment of crisis, or a community strengthened by safety and care.

Curious what your impact looks like?

Explore how your giving shapes Jewish life across Greater Washington:

• Security: Protecting our community and preparing for whatever comes next.
• Northern Virginia: Building connection and Jewish life across the region.
• Teens & Young Adults: Empowering the next generation of Jewish leaders.
• Camp & Education: Sparking lifelong Jewish learning and friendships.

This season, consider the difference you want to make, then choose the giving path that fits you best. Whether it’s online, through appreciated stock, your Donor Advised Fund, or a charitable IRA distribution, your generosity powers real impact across our region and beyond.

Because there’s no single way to build a strong, vibrant Jewish community. It takes all of us. 

Last week, Federation staff rolled up our sleeves (literally) at STOP THE BLEED®, a hands-on emergency training that teaches you how to respond to life-threatening bleeding. We practiced using tourniquets, packing wounds, and applying pressure—skills we hope we’ll never need, but ones we’re grateful to have learned.

In a crisis, there’s no time to think. When tensions are high and lives are on the line, you fall back on your training. And you hope it’s training that sticks.

That’s where JShield comes in, turning preparation into practice, and making sure that training happens before the moment it’s needed.

JShield in Action

For our staff, this training was memorable, even intense. For JShield, it was any other Wednesday. These kinds of high-impact, real-world trainings are standard operating procedure for our community security initiative—proactive, practical, people-first.

JShield supports synagogues, schools, and Jewish organizations across Greater Washington with the tools they need to protect their people: security assessments, grant support, expert trainings, and real-world readiness. So far in 2025, that’s added up to nearly $600,000 in estimated support—from consultations and training to grant writing expertise and threat assessments—helping institutions across the DMV stay prepared and protected.

Because of You

This kind of training doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because of your support for Federation’s Annual Campaign.

And right now, your gift toward security goes even further, thanks to a limited-time Security Match from The Morningstar Foundation, which is matching 50¢ on the dollar, up to $1 million, to strengthen community safety across Greater Washington.

That means more trainings like this. More experts in more spaces. More peace of mind in a time when it’s never felt more urgent.

So far this year, JShield has helped local Jewish organizations secure more than $4.33 million in federal and state security funding. Your support helps unlock even more.

Prepared and Proud of It

There’s nothing flashy about learning to stop a bleed. It’s messy. It’s tense. It’s vital.

But it’s also hopeful. Because it means we’re not waiting to react—we’re ready to respond, thanks to JShield. Together, we’re building a community that leads with courage, care, and preparation.

Let’s keep going.

Help power the next life-saving training across Jewish Greater Washington.

Every gift is matched. Every action counts.